Changeable exhibitor



J. P. FREEMON ET AL CHANGEABLE EXHIBITOR Filed Sept. 2'7 1922 2Sheets-Sheet EIIIIIIIIIIK EIE .nummm anon How June 12; 1923. 1,458,227

J. P. FREEMON ET AL CHANGEABLE EXHIBITOR Fi'led Sept. 27, l22 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented June 12, 1923.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that we, JOHN 'P. FREEMON andEURA P. MOFADDEN, citizens of the United States, residing at Ann Arbor,in the county of Washtenaw, State of Michigan, have invented a new anduseful Changeable Exhibitor, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to advertising apparatus and more particularly toautomatic changing signs in which two series or subpacks or displaycards or signs are disposed within a suitable containing housing, thecard from the front of one sub-pack being removed in a serial manner tothe front of a companion sub-pack, and in due order the card at the rearof the last mentioned subpack is moved to the rear of the first mentioned sub-pack. Incidentally to such shifting of the cards from onesub-pack to the other, the said sub-packs have lateral movement bodilyin the case of one subpack in a forward direction and in the case of theother sub-pack in. a rearward direction.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple and eiiicientmechanism for shifting the signs at regular intervals so that all of thesigns are brought into position for display in regular order.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear'as thedescription proceeds, the invention resides in the combination andarrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafterdescribed and claimed, it being understood that changes in the preciseembodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within thescope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 represents a front elevation of anexhibitor constructed in accordance with this invention with partsbroken out for convenience in illustration.

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view thereof.

Fig- 3 is a transverse vertical section taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1.'

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section takenon the line l-4 of Fig. 1 with thesigns omitted.

.Fig. 5 .is a detail sectional view.

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section of one of the signs forming a part ofthe invention, and

Fig. 7 is a transverse section thereof.

I: JOHN I. FREEMON AND EURA P. McFADDEN, 01E ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN.

CEANGEABLE EXHIBITQR.

Application fil ed September 27, 1922. Serial No. 590,888.

In the embodiment illustrated, a main frame or housing 1 is shownpreferably of skeleton metal form although not necessarily so.

This frame or housing is here shown rectangular in form and is dividedtransversely about midway its ends by an upright hollow partition 2which forms sign containing compartments 3 and 4;.

Arranged below the compartments 3 and 4 are transversely extendingshafts 8,. 9, 10 and 11, the two shafts 9 and 10 being arranged in closeproximity and each having a gear wheel 11 and 12 respectively which meshwith each other as is shown clearly in Fig. 2, operating to drive theend shafts 8 and 11 by means of sprocket chains '13 and 1.4 which passover sprockets carried by said shafts, the chain 13 being locatedat oneside of the frame in rear of the compartment 3 while the chain 14 islocated in front of the compartment 4. These chains are designed forshifting the signs presently to-be described.

A motor 15 of any suitable character, preferably electric is connectedto drive shaft 10' by means of a chain 16 passing over suitablesprockets on the motor shaft and on the shaft 10 whereby the chains 13and 14 are driven continuously in opposite directions- Spring pressedpins 5 and 6 are mounted at the lower end of the hollow partition 2 withtheir front ends projecting into the paths of the signs to be shifted,as will be presently more fully described. Coiled springs 7 are mountedon these pins 5 and 6 and exert their tension to normally force andyieldingly hold the pins in projected position.

Each of with pull hooks 17 and 18 which are designed to engage the signsto be shifted.

The signs 2.0 comprise rectangular frames 21 preferably composed ofwood, the ends 22 of which are beveled in opposite directions so thatthe signs will force themselves into position to displace the othersigns as they are moved by the chains to facilitate the movement of thesigns and to engage the spring projected, pins 5 and 6 which preventmore than one sign being passed from one compartment to the other at atime.

It is simply necessary to havev one sign more in one compartment than inthe other, it being understood that both compartments the chains 13 and14 are provided 3 311614 are of equal dimensions, and will accommodatean equal number of signs. For 1nstance,we W111 say compartment 4contains ten *signsfwhich fill it "to its capacity, and compartment 3contains nine signs, the

apparatus being in motion pull hook 17 engages the right hand end of thesign at the front compartment 4, thereby shifting the sign toward theleft which results in the shifting of this sign fromthe frontl'ofcompartment tothe front of comp artment 3, thereby filling compartment3to its capacity, ten signs, leaving compartment 4 with onlynine signs.After pull book 17 has transferred the sign from the front ofcompartment 4 to the front of compartment 3 and has been disengaged,pull hook 18 immediately engages the left hand end of the sign at therear of compartment 3, thereby shifting said sign from the rear ofcompartment 3 toward the right which results in the shifting of the signfrom the rear of compartment 3 tothe rear' of compartment 4, againfilling compartment t to its capacity thereby forcing the .si gn packfor ward placing the sign at the front of com- }partment tiin positionto be engaged by i the pull hook 17 immediately after-pull hook 18hasdisengaged from the sign at the rear .ofcompartmenta. By shifting onesign at .atime 1n continuous succession, a gradual pullof the motor willbe given and friction willbereduced to a minimum and will not :in anyway interfere with the displaying of thesigns at the front or the rearThese signs are exactly like except for the advertising ,niattercontained on their Iopposedfaces. ,These faces 23 and 24 are made oftransparent material and spaced laterally to form between them lightchambers as 25 in which are mounted electric light globes, vany desirednumber ofwhich may be employed, two being here shown and numbered 26.These: globes 26 are 3 mounted insuitable sockets with their contacts 27projecting below the bottom bar of the. frame as shown inQFig. 7, andare designed to contact with cooperating contacts 28 carried, by thehousing so that when pass i ng from one compartment to thefother, the

electric lights will be .cut off, andwhen in operative position thecontacts on the sign will engage those-of the housing to light thelights 26. The operation of this apparatus is as folf The com rtm'ia teifilled with signs .20 disposed; in upright position one at the front andone at the rear of each c0mpartme'nt being exposed to, exhibit theadvertising matter contained on their outer faces. .The motor. '15 beingset in operation, the

lchainsgl3and 14 travel continuously in oppositedireotions so thatatpredetermined intervals, the pull hook 17 will engage the the front ofcompartment a and the similar sign at the rear of compartment 3, I

As these signs move in themanner above described, the beveled ends 22will engage the pins 5 and 6, moving said pins inwardly against thetension of their springs p'erwithout danger of twosigns passing at the,sametime.

. a It will thus be seen that these doublefaced, double-walled signswill exhibit either by, day or; night the matter contained on theiropposed faces. and that they will automatically shift at predeterminedintervals without requiring any attention after the motor 15 hasbeenonce set in motion, the

the pull hooks on thechains.

1. In alchangeable exhibitor, the combination of a mainframeadapted tocontain two alined packs of display cards arranged in p close proximitywith atransv'erse space between them, a' m'otor, endless chains actuatedby said motor and having card vengaging meanswindividual to the frontand rear of ,mitting the signs to be shifted individually I "shiftingbeing controlled by the position of the packs and adapted tosuccessively shift,

a card from the front of one pack tothe front ofithe other and from therear of one totherearof theother whereby a gradual pull of the motorwill be given,thereby .re-

ducing friction to theminimum and avoiding interfer Signs a a 2. In achangeable exhibitor, the combination of a main frame adapted to containtwo ence with the display of the alined packs of display cards, -endlesschains having card engaging means individual to the front andrearfof'the packs'of cards and adapted to successively shift a-card.from the front of .one packto the front of the other and from the rearof one to the rear of y the other, means for operating saidchains, andspring projected"means located in the path of the cards to beshiftedwherebyithe cards are shifted individually without dangerof two cardspassing, at the same time.

3'. In a changeable exhibitor, the combination of a main frame adaptedto contain two alined packs of display cards, endlesschains.havinggcardengaging means individual to its the. front and rear of thepacks ofcards-andi adapted to successively shift a card from the frontof one pack to the front of the other "and from the rear of one to therear of the other, means for operating said chains, and spring projectedpins located in the paths of the cards to be shifted to avoid two cardspassing at the same time.

4:. In a changeable exhibitor, the combination of a main frame adaptedto contain two alined packs of display cards, endless chains having cardengaging means individual to the front and rear of the packs of cardsand adapted successively to shift a card from the front of one pack tothe front of the other and from the rear of one to the rear of theother, means for operating said chains, and means whereby the cards areshifted individually without danger of two cards JOHN P. FREEMON. EURAP. MOFADDEN. Witnesses as to John P. Freemon:

F. G. GUSTAFSON,

JEAN V. FREEMON. ;i

Witnesses as to Eura P. McFadden: C. H. JACOB, f ERMA M. BUTTERFIELD.

